


Miss Pino and the Big Bad Boss

by hollowmagic



Category: Original Work
Genre: Anxiety, Gen, Overthinking, Promotions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 09:33:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29008350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollowmagic/pseuds/hollowmagic
Summary: Pino has an issue for overthinking things. This time, the boss has her putting her mind to the test to make a big decision.





	Miss Pino and the Big Bad Boss

**Author's Note:**

> Fixed this up so it wasn’t as bad as it was 2 years ago.

Pino’s breath goes short for a sudden moment. The hallway seems so much quieter than usual, and it sends uneasy vibrations surging across her skin. She’s cold. Shivering, trembling— _scared._ Goosebumps sprouted out of nowhere all along her arms and legs despite the covering. Then it came. The realization. From the shadows a chilling thrash of anxiety slithers up her spine. _As_ _if a ghost was hugging her; it won’t let go. Why, though? She’s supposed to be calm. Why is she scared? This doesn’t feel right. She needs to get out, turn back and never come back. Something feels wrong, terribly wrong—_

Pino fixes her posture with a straight face and reaches for the door’s handle. The slightest touch of it and it sparks a shock— _lightning? No. Panic._ She immediately retracts it just as quickly as she grabbed it. The chill disperses. With wide, frightened eyes, Pino gasps and snaps her head around— _who’s there?!—_ the empty hallway taking a toll on her expectations. What was she hoping for? That the handle had electrocuted her as soon as she touched it? That Zeus had struck her down? Why does the hallway look so _unnerving_ all of a sudden? _Shouldn’t she be calm, relaxed, ready to take on the day just as she promised?_

Her daily morning chant, to take on the day, sounded childish now that she thought about it. 

_But why?_

It wasn’t as if she had any doubts about her life, or moral ethic. A cliché phrase being hollered at the crack of dawn had suddenly become so frivolous, so _stupid,_ that every day began with what could someday become a _lie._

But what was she hoping to see when she looked down that now dreadfully quiet hallway? Her mom? Coworker? Boss? _No, she’s in there._ Or perhaps that ghost that had abandoned her just now? 

_She has no clue what’s even_ bothering her _in the_ first place.

“Oh,” Pino mutters, so quiet, barely audible; and yet that ghost abruptly returns from its excursion and takes her words, throwing them against the walls, echoing beyond her ears’ reach. _Something’s not right_.

Pino turns back and goes straight for the handle, tearing open the door and squeezing her eyes so tightly she’s seeing illusions forming on the inside of her lids. If this conjunctiva conjure will shield from the nightmare ahead, she’ll keep her eyes closed forever.

She peeks open an eye ever so slightly and maneuvers herself. Marching with pseudo confidence, Pino plops down into the chair that stood in front of the desk. The ghost… He’s back. Goosebumps, anxiety, chills, terror, wrong, wrong, wrong.

She knows who is behind her lids, but she doesn’t look, wouldn’t dare it. Because she knows, _she knows,_ she _knows_ what she’ll see. Her boss. That _face,_ that _grimace,_ that _scowl,_ that—that _anger—_ the absolute _hatred_ that woman will have plastered on her face. If Pino opens her eyes, she’ll be staring into Medusa’s _soul._ Everything will be gone, taken away, ripped from her hands, vanish, disappear, everything she’s worked so hard for. It's so wrong, it's not right, she can’t sit still, its too much to bear, she needs—

“Pino.”

“Yes ma’am?” 

Pino’s heart skips a beat as her eyes pop open. The woman sitting in front of her has her hands placed palms-down on the table. Pino’s hands are squished between her legs, back straight, head up, eyes curious, and smile visible— _ready to take on the day._ The Boss is as poker faced and empathetic as ever. 

“You were supposed to be here, at my office, ten minutes ago, no?” 

Her tone is dead.

Pino takes a hand from the secure area of her legs and flourishes. “Oh, well, I ran into Crono on the way here. His printer ran out of ink, and he asked me to come with him to get more.” 

Boss’s eyes narrow and she leans forward, voice in that permanent state of purgatory. “So you’re telling me that you believe Crono is more important than I am?”

The world is spiraling.

Her eyes are fixated on Pino’s, waiting for a response. Pino opens her mouth to answer, but nothing comes out, she’s screwed up, shouldn’t have said anything, what she did was stupid **,** all her fault.

“No ma’am, I’m just looking out for my coworkers.”

“Mm-hmm. Alright. I’ll excuse your tardiness,” Boss leans over and opens a drawer, taking out a stack of written paper. “After all, you’ve been very productive these past four months.”

Pino remains silent. Boss rummages through her countless stacks of paper until picking out a certain sheet. She skims it once, twice, then places it on the desk in front of Pino. It's a graph. Progress...

Boss sighs. “Our sales have been decreasing lately, however. Pino,” Pino’s eyes shoot up, “I’ve hired you as my underling’s assistant. I was skeptical at first, but truly, you’ve earned the title. You’ve been able to miraculously raise our profit out of debt. I applaud you.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” 

Something’s still wrong. She can feel it in her gut.

The paper is of a line going up and down, gradually sloping down towards the right until shooting gently upwards. Boss nods, ‘yes yes’, and gets up from her seat. Of all times for Pino’s fear to skyrocket, why now? What for? What is she—why?

Boss is hovering over Pino, bent at a forty-five degree angle over her desk. There’s an unknown _glare_ in her eyes.

“But that’s not why I’ve called you here.”

The ghost—he’s back. Racing up her spine, grabbing her wrist, luring her out, get out, out, run! Something’s wrong, it's the classic hook line and sinker method; she’s been lured in here and that graph was the bait, her demise is near, she’ll have to find another job, live on the streets, she really likes this job, she can’t get fired yet…!

“What is the issue, ma’am?” Even her voice can’t conceal her quiet sobs.

Everything feels as if time has frozen. The ghost is gone again. Boss is still looking with those watchdog eyes, Pino noticing a little scratch in her glasses’ lens. Making an inanity about that now would be stupid, she decides.

Boss huffs and, as if pondering something, sits back down, skimming Pino’s body. Her posture, face, hair, outfit, smile… as if she has never seen her before. There’s a tint of _doubt_ in her eyes.

“Pino, you…” Boss starts to say, when something else comes to her mind. “Are you… happy, working for my company?” 

She misses the ghost. Longs for him.

Raising her eyebrows and tilting her head, a goofy and clueless smirk glides across her features. “Sorry? I don’t know what you mean.”

Boss grimaces and stares at Pino. The girl’s eyes dart around the office, searching for a camera, or a bug, something that will catch her in the act of slipping up.

_But why does Boss look so conflicted?_

“You are… something else,” Boss finally replies.

Nervous laughter. “Heheh, I’m a little lost… why—what—I don’t understand.”

“What’s not to understand?” Boss retorts, a hand on her head. “I’m asking you if you are happy working for me, my company. I’m asking you if _you like your job.”_

“I-Is that a trick question…?”

A loud bang. Boss is standing with her hands on the desk, fury in her eyes, fixated on Pino, all up in her face.

“A trick question? How old do I look to you? I assure you I do _not_ make jokes _.”_ Pino wasn’t sure what she was expecting, and it certainly wasn’t this. 

How old she is? Why, is she self-conscious about it? Is she testing her? She looks about thirty to thirty-five-ish… would that be an insult? If she lies and says she looks about twenty-six, will she distrust her because of dishonesty? Why is she asking that? Is this a trick question? Is she actually older or younger than she looks? Does her answer decide her fate of being employed here _?_

“In my opinion, ma’am, you look great just the way you are. But, if you want to know the truth, you look about somewhere in your _mid-thirties.”_

…

Pure, utter, silence.

…

Then, a small sigh. “Mid-thirties, huh? You’re too honest.” Boss relaxes a bit, shoulders lowering as she strolls off to the side of the office. She stops at the bookshelf and pulls one out to flip through it, sauntering towards Pino as she stares at a page. “That’s one of the reasons why I like you. I can figure you out without having to talk to you.” Pino hunches over, a nervy surge in her bones. Boss turns the book around and shows her employee a photo album, displaying a woman in a black-and-white picture. She has an uncanny resemblance to Boss _._

“See this lady here? That’s my great, great, great, great, great ancestor. She’s the one who started this company. You know what her motto was?”

She pauses there, like she wants Pino to finish her sentence.

“Um, no ma’am, I don’t.” What is even going on? Why is she showing her this? She wants to leave.She’s never missed her office so much!

Boss closes the book with a slap. “Her motto was: ‘Success comes in three different features: **_happiness, hard work, and honesty.’_ ** With those talents, you can become the _president.”_

A cold terror courses through the girl’s blood. What is she talking about? Can she leave yet please? She’s so uncomfortable...

“It sounds like a promising quote to follow,” says Pino. “It has already inspired me.”

Once again, the woman continues to watch carefully. Pino’s body unconsciously straightens out her already straight posture, mostly out of habit in the presence of the most powerful person of this corporation. Unlike Boss, Pino can’t tell what she wants. Calling people to her office almost at random, sometimes for checkups on their work, for scolding, or to fire them… this is the first time Pino has ever been called in. The end is nigh. She can feel it.

It's not as if Pino… hates Boss, it is… her look. Her eyes, specifically. She can never tell what she’s thinking. If the eyes are the windows to the soul, how deep does Pino have to look? Whenever she’d make eye contact with someone, anyone, she’d freeze up and look away. The thing is, she doesn’t know _why_ she’s here. More importantly, she doesn’t know why she is so _nervous._

“If I have to be honest here, Pino, I’d say you… have the skills of a master.”

…

_What?_

“What?”

Her eyes widen as she flickers her attention back to Boss. She is…! Her face, she…! At this very moment, she’s—!

 _Boss is_ **_smiling…_** _!!_

She! The one woman in this building who never cracks a grin! Never! Not once! Not even when she was invited to the comedy event during that Holiday Party two months ago…!

_But... why?!_

Pino can only stare at the woman’s mysterious smirk. There was no doubt, no disappointment, not even a glance of anger in those eyes. As if everything Pino had known was all a fraud, she could finally see through those glassy windows. There was… pride. Joy. A real… 

_A real smile._

She is at a loss for words, and it was in that one moment when Boss chuckled—

_Chuckled!_

—and sat back down in her large office chair. Pino still can’t believe what she is seeing, trying to comprehend it, the sight of her Boss looking even remotely _happy_ putting her off-guard. Then Boss’s mouth was moving, but Pino could barely hear anything over the white noise.

“...congra…”

“...decided…you…my…”

Her words invited the ghost back in the room, and by golly, in pure happiness, he made a beeline straight for Pino and gave her the biggest embrace she’s ever had. He hugged her tightly, cheering for her, proud of her. Everything she had said—what she likes, if she’s happy, her skills, her honesty, her hard work—they were all hints, and Pino was too _blind_ to see them.

“Miss Pino,” Boss says, handing Pino a pile of papers. There was a contract with an illegible signature, a graph—progress again—a filled-out job application, and a pen alongside it all. She stares down at them, mind drawing a blank as to what she was supposed to do. Boss was saying something. _Sign these papers,_ she assumed. So, she grabbed the pen, and froze. What was she supposed to sign? The contract and job application are both written already. Was she supposed to sign the _graph?_ Where’s the line to sign her name?

The world is still silent as she stares at the papers in front of her, unsure of what to do. She gives Boss a questionable look. _What do I do?_ was left unsaid.

Boss returns her stare with a shrug. _Well?_

Those windows of hers are cloudy. Mr. Ghost isn’t sure what he’s supposed to be doing either. He keeps leaving and coming back at random.

The problem is that Pino, for once, doesn’t know what she’s supposed to be doing. Signing the papers? Is she supposed to sign over them and put her name there? Is that even legal? What’s Boss trying to do?

“Well?” she eventually hears through the ringing. Pino blinks. Boss grabs her wrist and shakes it a little. “Pino, are you listening to me? Answer me.”

“Wha—what? Sorry, I didn’t hear you, what about Crono?”

She’s given an unamused look. Boss sighs and relaxes in her chair, taking off her glasses and rubbing her right eye. A deep breath, in, out, and stretches her arms across the desk, grabbing Pino’s hands and holding them gently. 

“Ahh, Pino, Pino, what’m I gonna do with ya? Tell ya what, I’ll cut the act now, just to get my point across, kay?”

What the—

That’s new.

Boss has never spoken like _that_ before.

Pino feels slightly light-headed, but… her stress has dissipated. Act? What act?

“Pino, I’m asking ya if ya wanna be the next person in charge here. How ya feel about it? Takin’ my place someday? Honestly, you’re incredibly talented and fit for the job! You’re an amazing worker, but don’t tell the officials I said that. I ain’t supposed to flatter one person more than the others, so keep it down, aight?”

‘ _Aight’?!_

The world isn’t spinning correctly; up, down, backwards, side-to-side. Pino’s dizzy, and Mr. Ghost sure isn’t helping her one bit. It's hard to process what Boss just said, let alone that new tone she has. 

“Boss… are you feeling okay?”

A fit of laughter. “Am I okay? I’d ask you the same thing! You’re as white as a ghost! Not to mention you’re shaking. Come on, I know it's scary, but please? Please be my heir to this chair? It's reeaaal comfy, you’ll love it! It's an honor to be here, Pino, don’t miss it!”

_She’s smiling again!_

Pino’s awestruck. Her? The heir to this _empire_ of a corporation? Is she serious?! Leaving it all to little ol’ Pino?! Is she _mad?!_

No… no, Boss is right. She’s seen goodwill in her. Her hard work, honesty, and... her happiness. Pino is… happy, working here. Working with Crono, with Boss, with that girl who never talks but ends up eating lunch together anyway… that is her job. She does her numbers, and Boss does hers. Taking another step up the pyramid and being crowned Boss of this place would… be a dream come true! Of course she’ll take up the offer, that’s the choice anyone would take!

...Right?

Pino was about to say yes, yes, please give me the crown, the chair, give it all to me, it's mine now, but… the ghost stopped her. He took her lips and pressed them together.

_What now? All I gotta do is say yes!_

Thoughts race through her mind. About Crono, her job, that girl at lunch, her home, parents, friends, and her life. She likes the way things are. As of now, this is something completely out of her schedule. Usually it was to wake up, take on the day, go to work, go home, do something in between, and repeat. That was her daily life, everyday for the past four months. Four months. Four months she’s been here, and she’s already offered the biggest promotion of a _lifetime._

She can’t do it… she just… can’t. Why, though?

_Why can’t you, you coward? Is this what felt wrong? That—that everything would be taken away? Why? Why can’t you grow up for once? Unbelievable..._

“Boss… I…” She looked down to the papers in front of her.

“Hmmmm? Yeessss?”

“I, uh, appreciate the offer, but…” 

A light dies in Boss’s eyes.

“I don’t think I’m ready,” Pino says as she puts down the pen and stands up. “I like my job the way it is, and… maybe you’ll find someone else here who’s fit for the job. Thank you for the consideration, though! Oh, and your secret is safe with me!”

Boss doesn’t answer, but Mr. Ghost is fine with that.

Pivoting on her heels, Pino turns around and exits the office without another word. The clacking of her heels echo down the hall with her. It’s that Ghost again… 

_Strange… the hallway… it's back to normal. No more stress, no more fear… peace._

Crono is at the other end of it, smiling beneath his dark hair. “How’d it go?”

Pino rushes down the hall and catches up to him. “It was okay. We just had a chat.”

“Tell me about it after work,” Crono says. Pino simply shrugs, grins, and faces forward. Ready to take on the day.

And she wouldn’t want to have it any other way.


End file.
